by Paul Harm
>> BREAKING NEWS <<
FUSION CORE MALFUNCTION CAUSED MARTIAN SPACE STATION CRASHING INTO OLYMPUS MONS
Joseph felt a sting in his heart his knees seemed to let loose for a second. The sound increased as the reporter appeared. “I’m sad to announce that our efforts in colonizing Mars took a catastrophical setback today when a reactor malfunction caused Ruby station to fall out of the Martian orbit. Our military intelligence tells us that there hasn’t been any sign of survivors. My condolences to the families of the heroes who fought on the brink of humanity’s reach for our people and the unstoppable galactic force that is humanity. Know that this sacrifice isn’t in vain but a little setback which we will follow up with a thousand steps forward.” She paused for a second and took a deep breath. “I’m glad to announce the head of both the UEF fleet Admiral Ivanova Gondak.”
The camera went dark and within a second admiral Gondak stood on the screen in military stance behind her the red planet and the stars shone. Her expression was stoic and grim, in her eyes flickered a silent rage and the calm of a predator ready to strike at any given moment making her look both dangerous and calm as a mountain spring. “I want to ensure every single one of Earth’s people that this setback, as hard as it may seem, is nothing that will hold us back for long. We’re glad to announce that after Ruby’s fall we’re taking a break from reaching further out towards the outer planets and are redirecting all of the solar systems energy and effort to claim Mars as our second planet just the way we planned. First, we’re going to rebuild Ruby but this time we will build two stations in order to ensure the habitation process goes faster than we planned in the first place. To those of you who’ve lost brothers or sisters, fathers or mothers, sons or daughters, friends, and lovers I must tell you!” She took a long breath in and the words did not come easily because they were not empty as so many politicians cultivated over the years but in her voice, there resonated an honesty only the great leaders of humanity ever achieved, because they did not just arranged words on one another. Her voice was just an extension of her soul.
“Your loved ones didn’t die in vain. They lived for a galactic civilization and they enriched the species, our species not only with their effort and their hard work but with every breath they took they pushed humanity a little step forward. They were heroes, they were visionaries and their sacrifice won’t be forgotten, nor shall it be in vain.” The silently residing rage behind her eyes flickered violently as she snarled the last sentence. Joseph felt something threatening from those eyes. It seemed like a war cry long and loud on top of her voice buried under a million layers of self-control. Joseph felt like there is something she is not telling the public something was off. “For all those families who’ve been robbed in this tragedy I offer you the opportunity to join us. You’ll be schooled and trained in order to finish our mission your beloved died to achieve. Consider this the only reconciliation I’m able to offer. For now. Join us in our heroic road towards a galactic civilization as we climb on top of the old roman gods and see far into the abyss of space and time. We shan’t resign in the face of darkness, but we shall double our efforts! Let our dead not be gone for nothing. Because they’re heroes of Earth, the species and the pride of our best sides.” The screen went dark.
“John...” Joseph fell back on a bench that stood nearby. “Do you think he’s...” Claire softly took Joseph’s hand “Admiral Gondak mentioned nothing about survivors.” Joseph began to snivel and slowly fell into a long and desperate cry. Claire held him she did not know John as well, but well enough to know that for Joseph he was something like a best friend, almost like a brother. They had known each other since they were kids, that much she knew and even though their paths divided Joseph always missed him. Joseph was gone. His body might be sitting next to Claire, but he wasn’t there any longer. He was in another place, similar to the place Lucia where, but different. It was a couple of days after they rescued John out of the cabin behind the graveyard beyond the slippery road. They grilled in the backyard of Lucia’s and Mike’s house. Afterwards they had an afternoon of adventure in the surrounding woods and neighborhood. When twilight laid the hills and forests in a soft orange the kids headed back to the fire their parents started and sat there, listening to ghost stories and adventures told by none less than old grandpa Romero. The sense of happiness of having John there was the best thing about it still. Besides all the beauty of that evening it was John’s unharmed presence that made Joseph whole. When John put his arm around him on that evening seemingly realizing how heavy his absence and kidnapping laid on Joseph’s heart, he understood that this man Joseph Grey will be a friend for life and Joseph knew it too. A tear ran down his cheek as he was not sad but happy sitting on a bench in Dhaka almost 25 years later. That is the true beauty of memories they do not capture an adequate copy of the physical reality, but they capture emotions perfectly.
Claire stroked through Joseph’s hair which partly threw him back into the here and now. Pain was here and suffering and somehow within the last week the pillars of life as he knew it and got used to them fell apart and now John was gone too. “This is without a doubt the shittiest week of my life so far.” “Something tells me next week might top this one.” Claire proposed with a smile. Joseph had to laugh for a moment, it was like when the dark thick wall of clouds allowed a sun ray to shine through but for now the thick clouds shall remain. “We better get going.” Claire proposed as friendly as she could. “You’re right.” Joseph was shocked, and he felt it first in his knees as they seemed to be surprised how heavy his upper body was. He stood up slowly and moved slowly just like someone who has a physical wound. After grabbing the new communicators from the safe deposit box, they looked for a place where they could talk safely. “So, the Middle East?” Claire looked at Joseph. “Yes, first we’re heading for Jerusalem and then we need to find a place called En Gedi.” “Alright let’s hit the road then.” “Yes, we meet up in Jerusalem on Zion square.” “Alright. I see you there.” And like that Claire was off towards the cascade system traveling separately once again.
“I really think this must be one of the strangest places I’ve ever seen.” Joseph pointed out as he walked through the sandy streets. “Maybe it’s because you’re used to a city like Salera which is new, but Jerusalem has roots older than seven thousand years. You can just feel that in a place I guess.” Claire looked at him and was happy to see him like that in times like these. “So, En Gedi?” “Oh yes we need to travel to the Dead Sea, but I couldn’t find a cascade system near it, the whole place seems to be a sanctuary.” Claire replied. “The Dead Sea?” Joseph looked puzzled at her. “What? No, there’s reservation called En Gedi, but it seems to be restricted. Maybe a local is willing to sneak us in.” “So, the coordinates are pointing in there?” “What I could see is thin vegetation and what seems to be an oasis at our coordinates.” “But do you know how we get in, Joseph?” “I think we could try to find someone who’s willing to show us this place.” “Well let’s try then.”
A day passed by searching for an opportunity to find someone willing to take them to the coordinates they found in the Bay of Bengal. After a couple of hours, it was clear that people do not know anything about this place in particular once they figured out where the coordinates were pointing. It was already sunset when they found a person who was familiar with that region. “This is a very strange place you want to visit. Do you even know what’s there?” The old woman asked them while her white hair was dancing in the soft breeze. “We don’t, we don’t even know where it is exactly or how to get there.” Joseph pointed at the coordinates. “It’s an ancient place, a holy place some might say, near the Dead Sea.” The old woman continued. “They made it a sanctuary after the great catastrophe, because it saved so many lives. You know when the darkness threatened to swallow mankind as a whole.” “The solar storms?” Claire whispered. “Yes, yes, exactly the solar storms the scientists called it. But in Jerusalem one of the ancient cities of mank
ind, we thought it was a warning. mankind moves to fast it moves to reckless and it failed to live up to a truly conscious beings purpose. For the refugees of Jerusalem En Gedi was the only hope and it did save a lot of human lives. So, the elders promised that if they and their children return safely home they’ll create a sanctuary for En Gedi for its honor and as a token of faith.” “Oh, this explains why no one either knows the place or isn’t willing to take us there.” Joseph threw into the conversation. “Yes, that’s the reason it’s a modern myth. But I’m not into those myths so much.” The old woman started to laugh and poked the fire in front of her with a stick.
“So, what do you want there anyway?” A sly glance focused Joseph. “We don’t know exactly but we do know it’s there.” Joseph declared after looking deep into Claire’s eyes. “I see you don’t want to tell me.” The old lady kept poking the fire and for a minute she seemed to mind her own business but suddenly she continued. “Fortunately, you come on the wings of a dream to me. Last night I laid awake my mind seemed to be restless. So, when I finally fell asleep I was tortured by dark dreams until a ray of light appeared. Two riders in front of the glowing desert sunset rode towards me as I was out of my mind with thirst, thunderbolts striking behind their horses, even though the sky was without clouds. They gave me some water to drink and told me they don’t know what it is but, in my heart, I felt it was the truth. They did not know what it was, but when my dried-out lips touched the water I knew what it was. Good intention and a kind heart. ELIAH!!!” The old lady screamed all of the sudden. Soon footsteps were heard from inside the house and soon a young man appeared. “Grandmother?” “Ah Eliah my most favorite grandson, be so kind and give those two a place to rest before you take them to En Gedi tomorrow.” “But Grandmother!” “Don’t you dare but Grandmother me. I know very well that you sneak out there with your spouses. And now do as I say.” Eliah sighed and gestured Claire and Joseph to come along with him. In the house they headed to stores up until they reached the guest room. “Make yourself at home. We leave tomorrow before dawn. It’s a very long ride I hope you’re in good shape.” After the door closed Claire looked at Joseph in shock. “Did he just say ride? As in riding a horse?” “Pretty sure we going to ride a camel honey.” Claire just stood there and sighed, turned around and fell onto the bed. “Good night Joseph. I’m exhausted.” “Good night.”
Turns out before dawn is somewhere around 4:00 AM. Eliah brought them breakfast and gave them ten minutes to get up when he found them still sleeping afterwards they were denied breakfast. But somehow the importance of their endeavor to overcome the limitations of their bodies and so they started their ride. It was just soon enough to dodge most, if not all, people in the city and they snuck towards the stables from where their long ride began. The problem was that there is no alternative to the cascade system unless you are in the military.
Horses are the best thing you can hope for and well camels are a close second. While they bridled their camels Eliah held a speech about how people confused camels and dromedaries all the time even though the difference is so simple. By the time he finished his story Joseph and Claire already sat on the saddle of their dromedaries, as it turns out. The first hours of riding went by smoothly. After a couple of hours of riding Joseph turned to Claire she hid her head under a big hat just like him. Approximately around noon the desert rose and soon they saw a mountain in the distance, well not exactly a mountain like Joseph recalled it from Melinda’s dream but at least a hill. The landscape changed from desert to rocky as they approached the hill, but the monotone sandy color of the ground did not change. Joseph felt like he knew the place from somewhere it had something familiar. As that thought manifested in his brain the world around him changed. The broad daylight vanished, and he saw a shooting star leaping through the night’s sky. “It’s her again. She was here.” He screamed out of nowhere. “What did you say?” Claire spoke for the first time and by the look on her face Joseph was now certain she did not enjoy the ride. “Melinda’s dreams, one of them is here she was here like she was in the Bay of Bengal.” Joseph mumbled trancelike. Claire hid behind her hat again. “Ok.” She mumbled without further comment.
After another hour they entered the hills from the west where a river flew through and behind the entrance they rode down the canyon until they reached a waterfall. The guide stopped and pointed over the waterfall to the east. When Joseph and Melinda climbed up the sandy and rocky wasteland they found an unexpected sight. After the waterfall hit the valley beneath a green and blue oasis decorated the desert around it. Palm trees and tinier plants, some birds and the life-affirming sound of burbling water. It was an eye catcher and the beauty in the little canyon underneath them was astonishing after spending half of the day in the desert. “But what’re we looking for here?” Claire asked without being too much aware of it. “Well let’s take a look at it maybe something shows up like last time.” After they climbed down the waterfall they searched the oasis for signs of something. Something might be a trap door, a hidden entrance maybe it is just something burrowed under a palm tree. Even though the oasis wasn’t too big, searching for an unknown object turned out to be borderline impossible. Nonetheless they searched until far into the evening and as the sun slowly started to set Eliah was convinced they would not find anything at all. Claire felt like they were searching in the wrong place as well. “Where are the exact coordinates Joseph? Do we have a way of determining the exact position?” “That might be a good idea, wait a second.” Joseph pulled out his communicator and checked the GPS system. “It seems the exact location is near the waterfall.” As they approached the waterfall it turned out the coordinates pointed about twenty meters behind the waterfall, it was up the hill near the spot where they climbed down. “We should have seen it there.” Joseph mumbled but he led them up anyway and when they stood at the exact location there was nothing but rocks and sand. “We can’t even dig in the ground here, Joseph.” Joseph could not wrap his mind around it. Is there something he was missing? He took a look around but could not find anything that gave him a clue. He climbed down the hill again and searched the area meticulously until the sun had almost set.
Eliah and Claire sat in the shadows nearby and watched Joseph in his attempt to make a fool out of himself while they enjoyed some food and a tasty and revitalizing herbal tea. As it became obvious Joseph was not going to find anything he started to rant all by himself in the near distance. They looked up from their teacups as Joseph started his rant but decided to ignore him and continued their meal and tea. Joseph was in front of the pool the one the waterfall created during the centuries it splashed down here. He started to run in circles and cursed and ranted on until he picked up a rock from the ground and shot it with all his strength towards the waterfall. The rock did not fly far enough and fell into the lake before it reached the waterfall. This made Joseph so mad that he again picked up a couple of more rocks and started his bombardment of the waterfall. He hit everything around it accompanied by unspeakable curses and when he had the last rock in his hand he swung in rage and where he should have heard a little knock from the rocky wall behind the waterfall he just heard nothing at all. Joseph got closer to the waterfall. Again, he shot and again he hit the waterfall and again no sound. It took him another shot to finally understand as he let a joyful scream go and sprinted towards his companions to show them his discovery.
XXIII. Mirage
“Look it’s right there, it’s has been right there all the time.” He pointed at the waterfall and his companions did not seem to understand at all. Claire was worried. Joseph spent a lot of time under the scorching sun and he wasn’t wearing a hat for quite some time. “What’s there, Joseph?” She asked him as she laid a comforting hand on his shoulder not showing her worries about Joseph’s mental health. “I don’t know what’s there, but I know it’s behind the waterfall.” He went as far as he could, ripped off his shirt and swam towards the brawling waterfall. He vanished through it and did not
come back so the other two followed him and where astonished as they found an entrance behind the waterfall, not very big, but it was there, an entrance in the solid rock where a person easily could get through. As they walked in, they first thought it might be or rather must be a natural formation of the rock but as they got further into the cave the walls got smoother.
After some minutes a weak light appeared in front of them and it grew bigger. Finally, they arrived at a metal door. Joseph saw a keypad next to the door. He entered the numbers Akachi gave them in order to get their new communicators from the deposit. As soon as the last number was typed in, a chamber as big as a living room and a couple of doors in it appeared behind the metal door. Cables lay on the ground and monitors stood on desks all over the place, it looked very much like the tube laboratory they found in London but somehow it was different. The London laboratory wasn’t as big, at least it did not have the other doors. The one thing that was missing was the giant water tanks. “What the hell is this place.” Eliah wondered when he entered the chamber. “We aren’t sure ourselves.” Joseph and Claire simultaneously declared. After taking a look over all the equipment that laid around Joseph and Claire exchanged a worried look. “It seems someone abandoned this place a long time ago.” Joseph pointed out as he held an unknown artefact in his hand. “Just like the other one. Come take a look.” Claire pointed towards a black screen on which a familiar white line popped in and out of existence. “The system seems to be still online.” Joseph rose an eyebrow. “Just like the other one it seems. Do you remember the command?” Claire looked like she thought heavily about something. “Grey.” She mumbled and started to type it in.
